A Different Outcome
by Pikapower9
Summary: When Jayfeather learns about the existence of genetics, he realizes that generations of ThunderClan cats have been faking their kits' parentage. A certain Gathering goes very differently with this knowledge. Takes place during PO3, Sunrise.


**Hiya! This is a fun little idea I had. Enjoy!**

 **Oh wait! First, for clarity, a cat that's golden, golden brown, or cream is considered ginger! Tons of genes control the tone and shade of a ginger cat, but they're all genetically ginger.**

 **Anywho! Enjoy!**

Jayfeather sighed as he walked along the WindClan border to search for herbs. He had only recently found out the truth: that Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw were not his parents. His real mother and father were Leafpool and Crowfeather, and right now it was all he could think about.

He was in a poor mood right now, and it didn't help that Squirrelflight had decided to come along to help him collect herbs. She had been trying to have a heart to heart since they had set out, but Jayfeather was having none of it. "Jayfeather, can we talk?"

Jayfeather kept walking as though he hadn't heard her.

"Jayfeather, please," Squirrelflight meowed. "I did what I did to protect you."

"Leave me alone."

Squirrelflight finally slowed to a stop, and padded away, leaving Jayfeather alone. He sensed her aura leave him behind, and he was finally able to relax.

Yet it took him seconds to realize that he was not alone. Grass rustled from the WindClan side of the border. Jayfeather tensed. Could this be an invasion? Jayfeather whipped around and was surprised when a non-threatening WindClan scent met his nose. "Oh hello, Barkface."

The brown medicine cat emerged from the undergrowth. "Hello, Jayfeather. Collecting herbs?"

"Trying to," Jayfeather muttered.

Barkface sighed. "I couldn't help but overhear. You're fighting with your parents?"

"We're not speaking," Jayfeather admitted.

"I understand."

"No, I don't think you do." Jayfeather was about to leave. What did Barkface of all cats know? The old medicine cat had no idea.

"I do understand. Truly," Barkface meowed after a long time. He sighed. "I know what you're going through. Many medicine cats fight with their parents when they discover the truth. It helps to remember that at least half of all Clan cats are faking their parentage, so you're not alone." He shook his head. "I was seven moons old when I put it together in my case. My parents were both ginger, while my brother and I were brown. It was rather obviously impossible."

Jayfeather decided to play dumb. "What are you talking about? Are you saying Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw aren't my real parents?"

"Ah, yes that." Barkface sighed. "I'm sorry. I thought you knew, but I suppose I should have guessed you might not. You wouldn't have memorized every cat's pelt colors to determine their parentage and possible kits' pelt patterns."

"What does fur color have to do with it?" Jayfeather meowed. "And how did you know Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw aren't my parents?"

Barkface turned slowly. "You mean… you _did_ know?"

"Not until a few days ago. How in the name of StarClan could any cat guess?" Jayfeather spat.

Barkface sounded stunned. "Hasn't Leafpool taught you about genetics and the rules of inheritance?"

"What?" Jayfeather was utterly confused now. Genetics? Rules of inheritance? What in the name of StarClan was Barkface talking about?

"Knowledge of genetics has been passed down from medicine cat to medicine cat apprentice for seasons," Barkface explained. "I'm shocked Leafpool hasn't told you about it. It's a vital part of your medicine cat training."

"What is genetics?" Jayfeather whispered, horrified that Leafpool had been keeping such an important part of his training from him.

"In its simplest terms, it is a set of rules for how things like fur color and eye color are passed down from parent to kit," Barkface meowed.

Jayfeather raised his head, and then turned to face the older tom directly. "Teach me."

* * *

Hollyleaf sighed angrily, still disgusted with the truth of her parentage as she listened in on the Gathering. She caught sight of Jayfeather, and shook her head to herself. The gray tabby tom appeared to be observing all the cats around him. It was almost as though he could see.

For some reason Jayfeather was acting strangely today. Earlier he had started asking Lionblaze about the appearance of their Clanmates. Although clearly confused at Jayfeather's sudden insistence on memorizing the fur colors of the Clan's warriors and kits, Lionblaze had given him descriptions of most of the cats in ThunderClan, and every so often Jayfeather would frown thoughtfully.

But now, none of that mattered. Hollyleaf knew she had to reveal her parents' treachery to all the Clans.

The moment had arrived. All the cats at the Gathering would know the truth about Squirrelflight's and Leafpool's treachery. Firestar and the other Clan leaders, along with the rest of the present cats, were staring at her.

"I'm not afraid of the truth! Leafpool is our mother, and Crowfeather- yes, Crowfeather of WindClan- is our father-"

"Wait just one moment." Another yowl rose up now. It was Jayfeather. The cats fell silent. "Hollyleaf, I know we thought we had this all figured out, but I've learned some new information recently and you're not quite correct here. You and I are Leafpool's kits, but Lionblaze on the other paw, cannot be hers." The outraged yowling swelled into a roar. "Wait!" Jayfeather's yowl silenced the meows. "I haven't paid close attention to the parentage of cats from other Clans, but let me tell you now, ThunderClan, that you have no right to be yowling about my parentage when half of you have betrayed your mates!"

"Outrageous!"

"You're lying!"

Dustpelt lashed his tail. "Where is your proof?!"

"Fine, Dustpelt, I'll start with you. Have you ever wondered why Icepaw is a pure white she-cat? I suppose if you and Ferncloud were both partially white you could have a pure white kit, but I've never heard of you or Ferncloud being partially white, Dustpelt!"

Dustpelt's lashing tail swished the air. "Well... pale gray is almost white. It's not like it matters. That's probably enough to have a kit with white fur."

"No, it's not. If neither of you have any white patches of fur, Icepaw cannot be your daughter." Jayfeather narrowed his eyes. "It looks like Ferncloud cheated on you."

"No!" Dustpelt exclaimed. "Ferncloud is my mate! She would never-"

"I confess!" Ferncloud wailed. "Dustpelt is not the father!"

The gathered cats gasped as one.

When Dustpelt finally spoke, his voice was a whisper. "Who then?"

"Cloudtail," Ferncloud mewed finally. "Cloudtail is her father."

Shocked murmurs echoed through the crowd. Dustpelt recoiled, horrified. "What?! He's your adopted littermate!"

"I know!" Ferncloud sobbed. "It's so wrong!"

Meanwhile, Brightheart was staring at her mate in disbelief. "Cloudtail, how could you?"

"I'm sorry, Brightheart, I really am," Cloudtail began, shifting his paws, "but as Jayfeather said, there could be more cats who aren't who we think they are." Brightheart was glaring daggers. "Perhaps we should move on to the others. Right, Jayfeather?" Cloudtail blinked at him imploringly. "There are more cats, right?"

"Actually," Jayfeather meowed, turning back to the rest of the group, "there are quite a few." Hollyleaf's jaw dropped as her brother swept his eyes across the gathered cats, looking almost as though he could see them. "I'll just start with some basic things that clued me in to the fact that half the Clan is either adopted or cheating on their mates. First thing, the inheritance of ginger fur. A pure ginger she-cat's sons will always be ginger. Her daughters will be tortoiseshell at least, or entirely ginger depending on the father." Sandstorm and Firestar began to nervously eye Leafpool, while Brambleclaw frowned thoughtfully, sharing a glance with his supposed sister, Tawnypelt.

Jayfeather continued. "Two parents without ginger fur cannot have a ginger kit. A ginger tom's mother absolutely _has_ to be at least partially ginger. And that means Hollyleaf wasn't quite correct when she said that all three of us were Leafpool's kits. As Leafpool is not a ginger she-cat, since Lionblaze is ginger, she is not his mother. I don't know what's going through all these cat's heads; perhaps Squirrelflight really did give birth to Lionblaze but secretly adopted Hollyleaf and myself."

Squirrelflight nodded. "It's true."

Sandstorm's ginger pelt gleamed in the moonlight as stood up, her eyes resting on Leafpool's light brown tabby fur. "Leafpool, I need to tell you something."

Leafpool shook her head. "It's okay, Sandstorm, I know I'm adopted. I only just realized a few seasons ago, and by then, well, who was I to judge? Though I am curious as to who my parents are..."

Firestar sighed. "Do you remember Princess, my sister? She found out she was to have kits around the time Sandstorm was expecting, but she feared her Twolegs would take them away. I volunteered to raise you as a ThunderClan cat."

Squirrelflight padded up and nudged Leafpool's side. "You'll always be my sister," she meowed, and turned to Lionblaze, Jayfeather, and Hollyleaf. "Just like you three will always be my kits."

"Too soon," Jayfeather meowed. "Also, Lionblaze is your kit anyway. Actually, it's kind of messed up how you had him believe he was adopted for the last two moons."

Squirrelflight shook her head sadly. "I know, but it would have taken too long to explain when I first revealed that you were not my kits to Ashfur to prevent him from killing you. That log was on fire; I needed a quick explanation."

"Wait, what?" Firestar, Brambleclaw, and various other cats yowled simultaneously.

Jayfeather turned away, allowing Squirrelflight to take that one.

He turned his ears, searching for other cats. At that moment Cinderheart padded up. "My littermates and I, our parents are truly ours, right?"

Jayfeather sighed. "So this is a weird situation," he began. "You've probably realized that you have odd dreams about herbs and the old forest. This is because you are the reincarnation of Cinderpelt."

"What?!" multiple cats called out in shock.

Jayfeather nodded. "You've always looked like her apparently."

"You do." Just then, Leafpool padded up and rested her tail on Cinderheart's shoulder. "In fact, it's very possible that you are what is considered a clone."

"What's a-" Cinderheart narrowed her eyes in confusion- "clone?"

"A clone is an exact genetic copy of another cat," Leafpool explained gently.

"Which is something I would have known before yesterday if you had bothered to teach me genetics," Jayfeather muttered. Hollyleaf glared at her mother. She had avoided an important part of Jayfeather's medicine cat training just to keep her secret! _The traitor!_

"What does this mean?" Cinderheart asked. "Are Brackenfur and Sorreltail the parents of me and my siblings or not?"

Jayfeather sighed. "Your reincarnation complicates things; I'm unsure whether you're biologically Sorreltail's kit by a non-ginger father, or a clone of the original Cinderpelt that sprang into existence moments before your birth. If you technically are a clone, your parents, while not biologically yours, have been faithful to each other, and you have nothing to worry about."

"Then she must be a clone." Brackenfur wrapped his tail protectively over Sorreltail's shoulders. "Sorreltail would never betray me like that."

"I do think Cinderheart is Cinderpelt's clone," Leafpool meowed. "They look almost the same."

Jayfeather turned back to Cinderheart. "Judging from your littermate's pelt colors, Brackenfur is certainly your father... well, in the figurative sense for you, but literally for your littermates."

"He... is?" Sorreltail choked out.

Jayfeather frowned. "Of course. Brackenfur is golden brown, which is a variant of ginger from what I'm told. Your non-reincarnated kits are all either ginger or partially ginger. I don't understand why you'd be concerned." Sorreltail's eyes flitted back and forth nervously, while Thornclaw hummed inconspicuously behind them.

"Oh, no reason," Sorreltail meowed. "Just being silly. Ha ha."

"Wait a moment." Hazeltail and Mousewhisker stood up. "According to you, a ginger she-cat's sons would be ginger and her daughters would be at least partially ginger. Are you saying Daisy can't be our mother?"

"Yes." Jayfeather turned around. "Anyone else?"

Graystripe added his voice to the ruckus tentatively. "It's probably nothing, but what about my kits?"

"Oh that." Jayfeather shrugged. "They're not yours. Well, Blossomkit isn't anyway; Briarkit and Bumblekit could be though."

"That's preposterous!" Graystripe mewed.

"Why did you ask me if you don't want to know?" Jayfeather replied.

"I was just making sure-"

"Blossomkit is a tortoiseshell. You and Millie are both gray. Since I witnessed Blossomkit's birth and know that Millie did not secretly adopt her, there is no possible way that you are her father."

Graystripe's eyes were wide with horror. "Then who was it?"

"Her father must be a ginger tom," Jayfeather meowed.

Graystripe spun around, resting his horrified gaze on the nearest ginger tom he saw. "Brackenfur, how could you? My own apprentice!"

Brackenfur shook his head solemnly. "It was not I who betrayed you, Graystripe. I am not the only ginger tom in ThunderClan."

Graystripe blinked, looked past Thornclaw, and slowly turned his head upwards to the four Clan leaders. "Firestar!"

"Wait, what?" Firestar was blinking in confusion. "I would never do that to you Graystripe. You're my best friend!"

"Then who was it?" Graystripe yowled. "I don't see any other ginger toms here who could be Blossomkit's father!" Meanwhile, Thornclaw hummed casually in the background.

Jayfeather left them to their argument and padded over to where Spiderleg and Birchfall were discussing the paternity of Daisy's second litter.

"Well, Rosekit might not be yours, but Toadkit probably is," Birchfall was mewing to his black and brown pelted brother.

"Ehhh," Jayfeather meowed.

Looking up, Birchfall tilted his head. "Are you saying Spiderleg is not their father?"

"I'm not exactly sure," Jayfeather replied. "Technically speaking, Spiderleg shouldn't exist. His pelt pattern is impossible. I suppose he could be Toadkit's father, but Daisy can't be his mother because she is a ginger she-cat, and any tom born to her would have to be ginger. I doubt Spiderleg was involved at all- there's a high likelihood that he's incapable of fathering kits. It would make more sense if Daisy adopted Toadkit from a different couple, one with either a mother or father who was black or gray-"

"I confess!" Ferncloud howled. "Toadkit is my son!" Shocked murmurs rippled through the crowd.

"What?" Dustpelt yowled. "How could you give up a kit?!"

"We already had so many!" wailed Ferncloud.

Spiderleg flicked his tail irritably at the sound of his mother's sobs. "So we know about Toadkit," mewed the unnaturally pelted tom. "But what about Rosekit? Even if Daisy is her mother, her father would still need to be ginger."

"That's right," Jayfeather meowed, pleased that some of his Clanmates were thinking deeply about genetics. "Since Rosekit is a pure ginger she-cat, her father must also be ginger." He paused. "I wonder who it is..." Thornclaw continued to avoid his Clanmate's eyes.

Birchfall spoke up. "Jayfeather, what about my kits? I am a brown tabby, but they are both gray or silver. Is it possible that Whitewing..." He trailed off, his eyes filling with despair at the thought of his mate betraying him.

Jayfeather frowned, deep in thought. "You could be their father," he meowed finally. "Since Whitewing is a white she-cat, her white fur masks other pelt colors. She is part ginger, because her mother, Brightheart, was entirely ginger besides her white fur, and not a tortoiseshell, and would surely pass on being partially ginger to a daughter. It all depends on the pelt color of Cloudtail's or Brightheart's ancestors."

"Huh?" Birchfall meowed in confusion.

Jayfeather flicked his tail, trying to think of a way to explain. "If one of Brightheart or Cloudtail's parents, grandparents, or even a more distant ancestor was gray, it's entirely possible that that was passed down through Whitewing to Ivykit and Dovekit. If it was masked by completely white or ginger fur through the generations, it's possible, even if there hasn't been a gray cat in that line recently."

Meanwhile, the yowls of outrage were dying down.

"I just want you to know how sorry I am," Sandstorm was mewing, gently licking Leafpool's head.

"It's okay," Leafpool meowed. "I understand."

Suddenly Cloudtail's voice rose into the sky. "Hey, I just realized! Leafpool is my sister-"

"Don't change the subject," Brightheart hissed.

"I think this may be time to call for an end to this Gathering," Onestar announced, throwing a sympathetic glance at Firestar. "ThunderClan has some issues to work out that won't be solved by a full moon truce."

Firestar dipped his head. "It will take seasons for us to regain our trust in each other," he admitted solemnly. "But know this: at the end of those seasons we will be stronger than ever."

The cats began to surge toward the fallen tree. Hollyleaf peered through the group, trying to find Jayfeather and Lionblaze. As Hollyleaf searched the crowd for her brother and second cousin, cats didn't seem to notice her at all. They were too distracted by the shocking revelations about their own parents, mates, and kits.

Graystripe was still arguing with Firestar. Ferncloud was still distraught.

Brackenfur, Sorreltail, Cinderheart and Poppyfrost meowed appreciatively to each other; they were one of the few families not caught in the web of lies… key words 'not caught'. Sorreltail was still shifting her paws awkwardly. Thornclaw padded along beside them, looking inconspicuous.

Hollyleaf, Jayfeather, and Lionblaze fell into step beside each other. It was then that Hollyleaf knew that the three would always consider themselves littermates, even if they weren't related as closely as they thought.

"This isn't actually so bad," Lionblaze meowed once they crossed the fallen tree and reached WindClan territory. "I was concerned when Hollyleaf started revealing the truth, but good recovery, Jayfeather. Our parentage won't be at the forefront of every cats' minds now."

"I suppose." Jayfeather sighed. "I do think I might have gotten a bit carried away there."

"You think?" Hollyleaf purred, nudging his flank affectionately. "I probably shouldn't have started that. I might have caused a permanent rift within ThunderClan."

Jayfeather shrugged. "It's alright, Hollyleaf. Look at the bright side. Every cat is so distracted by the drama, we'll be able to put the whole who murdered Ashfur fiasco behind us."

"Yes, that will be good for the Clan." Lionblaze tilted his head thoughtfully. "I do wonder who did it though."

Hollyleaf stopped. "Um, about that..."

 **THE END**


End file.
